SBP to launch a web portal to elevate financial literacy in the country

State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) will launch a web portal and a helpline service for the purpose of promoting financial literacy among the masses.

The Nationwide Financial Literacy Program (NFLP) has been initiated by the central bank in order to educate the unbanked and low-income sectors of the population, with a special focus on the youth and women.

The program has been sponsored by the Asian Development Bank and is being rolled out in various phases with the aim of completing its objective of reaching one million beneficiaries in 5 years. This will be achieved through an ingenious public-private model where banking institutions and SBP field offices will be engaged to spread awareness regarding NFLP in remote areas of Pakistan.

It is worth noting that the pilot for this program was launched back in August 2017 in 77 districts of the country. Having now entered its second year of implementation, the program’s scope has widened to all 158 districts of Pakistan.

Dedicated half-day classrooms will be arranged for the purpose of educating people about six important financial themes which include budgeting, savings, investments, debt management, consumers’ rights & obligations, Islamic banking, branchless banking, and currency management. The training sessions will be sourced from banks, microfinance banks (MFBs) and microfinance institutions (MFIs).

Furthermore, SBP plans to launch a dedicated NFLP web portal and toll-free helpline in order to reach out to the masses. More information about this development is yet to be disclosed.

The NFLP aims to enable the public to make smarter and more effective decisions with respect to financial and allied services by boosting overall financial literacy. This will go a long way in improving financial management at an individual level, which is bound to foster a much-needed environment of competitiveness, innovation and smart decision making.

Other organizations that are collaborating with the SBP in this program include Pakistan Banks’ Association (PBA), Pakistan Microfinance Network (PMN), Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF) and Bearing Point.